Last night we had a rare Lunar Eclipse. I tried to view it twice last night, but due to cloud coverage I was unable to view it. When I returned inside I read this on Pastor Adam Hamilton's Facebook status...
Lunar Eclipse: In the heavens tonight a full moon's light extinguished - darkness overcomes the light. The winter solstice is the longest night of the year - darkness seems to have the upper hand. This year the solstice was combined with a total eclipse of the moon - where we could see light conquered by darkness.
No one knows the day Jesus was born. The early church adopted December 25th because it roughly coincided with the time surrounding the winter solstice. This date was a way of saying, "In Jesus' birth, light has come into the darkness, and the darkness could not overcome it!" Tonight the solstice was combined with a lunar eclipse - darkness seems to conquer light.
In a few minutes the light of the moon will reappear - conquering the darkness. And from this night on for the next six months, daylight increases and darkness decreases. This is a powerful metaphor for Christmas. On Christmas Eve we celebrate Christ's role in overcoming the darkness by lighting candles, but tonight the heavens told the story this for us. How cool is that?!
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